Land of Waves…
Shisui already knew that i Terumī, the Fifth Mizukage, had dispatched shinobi to probe them. He figured that after such an encounter, she must now be wary of their organization.
In fact, when their presence beca known to the Hidden Mist Village, Shisui had already discussed the matter with Naruto. The conclusion was simple: let the Mist serve as the public face of the Seven Colors Trading Company, while they themselves remained in the shadows.
Let the Mist attract the attention of other nations.
In Naruto's words—keep a low profile now, expand steadily, and wait. In a few years, things would be different. By then, Naruto himself would stand as a Kage-level figure.
And he wasn't alone. Those young Uchiha, the "brats" who had once followed him, were no longer children. They were older than Naruto and Sasuke, and the oldest among them had already reached Jōnin rank. In a few more years, they too would fully mature.
But for Naruto, their true growth lay not in skill, but in ideological training.
The proud arrogance of the Uchiha had nearly been worn away during this period. Naruto's ideals—his "red doctrine"—had been etched into them.
Once, the Uchiha Clan prided themselves above all others. So were excessively arrogant, and their children inherited that sa mindset. Fortunately, these youths' values had not yet fully solidified, making it possible to reshape them.
"Shisui, what do you think?" Naruto asked with a smile.
At that mont, Rock Lee had returned to Konoha. Unlike Naruto and the others, Lee didn't know the Shadow Clone Technique and had to continue training directly under Might Guy during his breaks.
Neji and Sasuke, however, had begun targeting rogue shinobi.
Bandits had once been their test subjects, but only true shinobi battles could forge experience in life-and-death combat. Even so, Naruto dispatched his own shadow clones in secret to follow them, ensuring they wouldn't fall prey to unexpected dangers.
Shisui t Naruto's gaze and smiled faintly.
"The Mizukage's motives are clear. We've threatened the livelihood of the Land of Water, and the imnse profits of the Seven Colors Trading Company are enough to make her covetous. Who wouldn't envy such wealth? Since she wants a share, let's give it to her.
We can even make use of her shinobi. If they want profits, they must contribute. Then we'll spread the word that the Hidden Mist is the true power behind the Trading Company. Mizukage Terumī won't be able to deny it."
"After all, if Mist isn't controlling it, the other Great Villages will covet it imdiately. This way, the pressure falls on her shoulders instead of ours.
At the sa ti, having one of the Five Great Ninja Villages as our 'public' backing will only help our company flourish.
Even if she tries later to deny us, who will believe her? By then, many Mist shinobi will already be tied to us. Shinobi are people too—they have desires, they need money. Once we give them enough, even if the Mizukage wants to destroy us, her own village will hold her back."
Shisui's words carried conviction. He was beginning to show the deanor of a commander.
Naruto smiled, but shook his head.
"Well said, but you're still overlooking a few things."
"First—you underestimate human greed. The Mizukage isn't alone. She has powerful clans backing her, and they'll demand a share as well.
And don't forget the nobles of the Land of Water—and even the Daimyō. Do you think they'll allow the Mist to monopolize a golden goose like the Trading Company? They don't trust shinobi because of loyalty. They trust them only because they don't control the economy."
"Shinobi have lived off missions for generations. Only clans with weak shinobi bloodlines send their children into business. In this world, the strong are respected."
"The first step," Naruto continued, "is to control those nobles. Make them clear the path for us.
At the sa ti, we'll develop hidden industries outside the Seven Colors Trading Company. Not everything can sit under one roof. Most importantly—" Naruto's tone sharpened, "—we must control the food supply."
Shisui listened intently, his eyes widening. He realized how narrow his own planning had been.
Naruto wasn't finished.
"And beyond that, we'll establish a separate front—the Umbrella Company. A luxury brand, aid squarely at the nobility. Costics will be its foundation. That industry must remain firmly in our hands."
That's right—costics!
In this world, costics already existed, but the idea of branding wasn't well established. With his experience from his previous life, Naruto naturally understood just how vast the potential of the costics industry could be.
After all, plenty of kunoichi used costics.
Not to ntion noble ladies and their wives!
Many tis, even the growth of a shinobi village was influenced by these nobles. While the villages held military power, the nobles controlled political authority—and there were always far more ordinary civilians than ninja.
Ever since Senju Hashirama's one-country-one-village system beca the norm, this balance between daimyo and shinobi had gradually solidified into a universally recognized system.
And in this world, where bloodlines held enormous importance, the truth remained: it was still the nobles who ruled.
Take the Land of Wind, for example. One reason it remained the poorest nation was because its daimyo allocated the least military funding to Sunagakure—and even cut that budget repeatedly. Even though the Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, seethed with anger, there was nothing he could do.
After all, the Land of Wind had lost in war and still owed reparations to the Land of Fire. Naturally, the Wind Daimyo shifted the bla onto Rasa.
In the shinobi world, the power of nobles was an often-overlooked but undeniable factor.
And Naruto? With his vision and ambitions, there was no way he'd show rcy when it ca to exploiting these nobles.
"Isn't there dical Ninjutsu that can stimulate cell activity? We could use it to develop dicines that help won maintain youthful skin—or even make soone appear years younger.
Herbs can do this, sure, but if we refine and dilute the formula into sothing that requires continuous use to maintain results, we'll create a product people have to keep buying. That way, our custors stay hooked."
Naruto laid out his idea.
Shisui frowned. He wasn't convinced. To him, costics sounded frivolous. Would people really pay large sums just to look slightly younger or prettier?
"Naruto-kun, will anyone really spend money on sothing as useless as costics?" Shisui asked hesitantly.
Naruto chuckled and shook his head.
"Shisui, you underestimate how much won value their appearance."
...
TN:
Hope you Enjoy~??
???? Support
on P-com/Lordrlin
Reviews
All reviews (0)